Window Cleaners - what to expect?

[notcitrus]

Was going to post in AIBU but got scared. :)

We live in a semi-detatched house with a converted loft, so 3 floors. Back of house on ground floor is almost solid glass - essentially a wide conservatory.

Couldn't find any window cleaners for ages, but then a couple guys appeared and offered their services - DP agreed, and turns out they expect you to agree to have your windows done every couple months, which would cost us £7 for the front of the house, £15 to include the back. Sounded cheap so DP signed up.

So one day I was in (sick), and they ring the bell to say they've cleaned the front windows. The back ones are filthy so I ask them to do the back of the house, let them round the side, go back to bed, and under 5 minutes later see one guy wiping my bedroom window with a cloth. Less than 5 minutes after that they ring again to say they are done. Turns out they 'don't do' the top floor, but more importantly the windows aren't even wet!

I have no idea how much window-washing ought to cost, but surely there ought to be a bucket of water and a squeegee involved?! And it must take more than 10 minutes to get about 20 sq m of glass plus four other windows clean? They don't seem any cleaner than when the guys started. I did pay them but DP phoned to tell them not to bother coming back.

How much do you pay window cleaners, how often, and how long do they take?

£8 every other month. 2 guys, one ladder, front, back and a bucket of water!

Take about 10 mins max

£8 every month.

All windows done front and back, and also small panes in front and back doors.

And they wave at DS while doing this which makes them more than worth it

For the record, proper window cleaners have insurance - ask to see their certificate to weed out the chancers!

when you say "they 'don't do' the top floor,"

is yours a 3-storey house? If so, they are not suppoosed to do it from a ladder now and they will be uninsured due to greater risk of death or injury when they fall off.

I have a 3-storey house and pay my windowcleaner £16.50, he comes round once a month. Other cleaners were unwilling to do the job and sometimes did not turn up. He used to do it off a long ladder but now uses a pumped purified water system in his van and cleans them using a long pole with a squirty brush on it. This is quicker and does a good job (but you do have to use the purified water with no hardness or other content that leaves smears).

I know someone in suburban London who pays £12 to have a bigger house done once a month, it is only two stories so they work off ladders.

A proper window cleaner uses a wooly thing to put the water on, and a rubber squeegee, never a rag.

Do these people appear to be properly in business, with a sign-written van, a card showing their real address and a land-line phone no? Or are they just anonymous itinerants?

I love my window cleaner! £3.50 and a cup of tea and he does all my windows and plastic frames AND the doors, and the conservatory out the back and the summer house in the nicer weather he shouted at me when I gave him £5 as a "tip" (wasn't patronizing enough to say here's a tip just said keep the change)..I do live in a bungalow though but he goes out of his way to do a good job.

I ignore his pass remarkable "it must be hard to keep the house tidy with DD but at least it's clean" comments as he does such a good job

That's once every 4 weeks

£13 a month,really nice guy.Takes about 15 minutes,front,back and upstairs - he has the long pole with a squirty brush thing too,though for our back upstairs windows he goes up on our back extension roof.
The windows are definately clean afterwards,but I don't think they look wet because the water is being squeegee'd straight off.

Thank you people - it is now a 3-storey house but does sound like these guys are chancers - a long pole for water sounds like what is needed, and evidence of a squeegee. But impressed that reputable cleaners can do a whole house in about 15 minutes! The ones on swings doing my office block seem to take that long over one floor!
Will try looking online again as neighbours haven't been able to find anyone either.
So anyone looking for a business opportunity in SW16...

"swings"

£9.50 for a clean (i ask them to do every couple of months, rather than once a month).
there's about 4 of them. they take between 5 minutes. we live in 4 bed detached, so i think about 10 windows in all. they use buckets, water, squeedgees and cloths!